1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a connecting apparatus between a terminal block that is attached to an enclosure of an inverter or a motor and power cables that supply electric power from the inverter to the motor.
2. Description of Related Art
An electric vehicle includes a motor for driving, and an inverter that converts direct-current power of a battery into alternating-current power with a suitable frequency for driving the motor. A cable for supplying the electric power from the inverter to the motor is often referred to as a power cable because the cable passes a large current. An enclosure of the inverter is connected to an enclosure of the motor with power cables. A connector is attached to an end of the power cables, while the enclosure of the inverter or the motor is provided with a terminal block that couples with the connector.
The driving motor for the electric vehicle requires a large amount of the electric power in particular. Consequently, each of the power cables has a large diameter and high stiffness, and thus a connecting structure between the connector and the terminal block requires high strength. Accordingly, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2011-177002 (JP 2011-177002 A) and Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2012-160355 (JP 2012-160355 A) disclose the techniques for increasing the strength of the terminal blocks in particular. In the techniques disclosed in JP 2011-177002 A and JP 2012-160355 A, nuts are aligned in the terminal block for fastening the terminal of the connector in the power cable with bolts. In addition, partition panels (JP 2011-177002 A) or ribs (JP 2012-160355 A) are provided between the adjacent nuts to increase strength of the terminal block.